bardstalefandomcom-20200214-history
Summoned Monsters
In Tales of the Unknown, there is a "special" slot (marked S) at the front of the party which can only be occupied by a friendly or summoned monster. While friendly monsters may be randomly encountered within a Dungeon (first giving players the decision to Allow it to join the party or Fight it), a more reliable method to fill the Special slot is to use spells to summon a monster. In The Destiny Knight and The Thief of Fate, there is no "special" slot reserved solely for monsters - instead, the party can be increased to seven members (the special slot is marked slot zero). However, the game manual recommends that at least one slot be reserved to allow for a summoned monster or other special member to join the party temporarily. Utility Having a monster in the party gives several advantages. First, being at the front of the party, summoned monsters are likely to be targeted more than other party members, making it more likely for the rest of the party to survive (especially when you start facing foes that can turn you to stone, etc). Having a monster also means having a fourth melee attack in Combat, which can be very useful when grinding with melee to save spell points in a dungeon. This mainly is a factor in Tales of the Unknown, where you can't just make a 4th front-line fighter to fill slot zero. While you cannot make your monsters more durable by giving them armor like your main characters, they do benefit from Persistent Spells and Bard Songs that lower armor class, etc. However, if your monster dies, you can always summon another one, assuming you have the spell points! Real vs. Illusionary While most monsters in the party are flesh and blood, either being recruited or summoned by a spell or figurine, monsters summoned by Sorcerer spells are illusionary. Illusionary monsters behave just like normal monsters, they can be disbelieved by powerful foes, instantly "killing" them and removing them from the party. Summoning Spells by Class Conjurer Magician Sorcerer (Note: all Sorcerer summons are illusionary!) Wizard Figurines Some monsters can be summoned by using a Figurine item, usually found in dungeons. Figurines are one-use items, and thus disappear from your inventory once used to summon a monster. If you don't need them, they can be sold at Garth's Equipment Shoppe for a tidy sum. Tales of the Unknown The Destiny Knight The Thief of Fate Multi-Use Items Some items can be used multiple times to summon monsters before being expended. These items are much better for conserving limited inventory space in the party, but are limited to replicating the effects of spells, rather than summoning entirely new monsters like some Figurines do. Tales of the Unknown Baylor's Spell Bind (5th-level Wizard Spell) Baylor's Spell Bind does not summon a fresh monster from the aether to serve the party, or craft an illusionary one. Instead, it is a mind-control spell that affects a monster who's attacking the party. This can be very useful if the monsters one is encountering in the dungeon are more dangerous than anything you can summon! It costs 14 spell points to cast, but does not always work...Category:Tales of the Unknown Category:Gameplay Category:Game Mechanics Category:Spells